International travelers continue to avoid Kaua’i and Hawai’i, and when that fact is coupled with downturns in the dominant mainland market, the result is a 22 percent drop in visitors to the island last month. Kaua’i greeted 74,565 visitors last
International travelers continue to avoid Kaua’i and Hawai’i, and when that fact is coupled with downturns in the dominant mainland market, the result is a 22 percent drop in visitors to the island last month.
Kaua’i greeted 74,565 visitors last month, down 22.1 percent from the same month last year. Domestic arrivals numbered 68,490, off 11.8 percent compared to October 2000.
International arrivals were 6,075, down 66.3 percent from October of last year, according to statistics from the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT).
For the first 10 months of this year, 866,344 people came to Kaua’i, down 5.7 percent compared to the same period last year. Domestic arrivals were 718,768, down 5.2 percent compared to the first 10 months last year, and international arrivals were 147,576, off 8 percent compared to the same period in 2000.
Lengths of stay were down for the month and year to date in all categories, though the length of stay among domestic visitors for the first 10 months this year was off just 0.9 percent, to 6.59 days.
For the first 10 months of this year, Kaua’i is alone among the counties in experiencing an increase in the number of Japanese visitors this year compared to the same period in 2000.
Tourism officials remain hopeful that the state’s largest industry will rebound.
“We anticipate that the additional $10 million approved for an emergency tourism marketing campaign by the special legislative session last month will help to stabilize our visitor industry,” said Dr. Seiji Naya, DBEDT director.
“The campaign targets the top 20 markets in the U.S. and Canada, and the top three cities in Japan,” he said. “It will highlight the healing and rejuvenation aspects of the Hawai’i vacation experience, and will focus on frequent fliers, families, seniors, veterans, the honeymoon/wedding market, and meeting planners.”
Other DBEDT figures show Kaua’i the most popular island among U.S. visitors seeking golf and fitness activities, according to surveys of visitors over the first six months of this year.
Some 95 percent of visitors from the U.S. west portion of the mainland gave Kaua’i an “excellent” or “above average” rating. That figure was 97 percent for U.S. east visitors. U.S. west visitors came to swim, go to the beach and snorkel or scuba dive, while half of those visitors also made it to a discount or outlet store during their Kaua’i stays.
Over half of U.S. west visitors took in a historic site, and nearly 85 percent rented cars to get around. Statistics were a bit different for U.S. east visitors, with less indicating they would go to the beach or snorkel or scuba dive, and less rented vehicles (76 percent). Half visited supermarkets, nearly two-thirds visited a beach, and over one-third backpacked, hiked or camped.
